Take cover this tornado season with a little help to your wallet

Amarillo, Texas - One local organization is already pushing Panhandle residents to prepare for the coming tornado season.

Through a special grant from FEMA, the Panhandle Regional Planning Commission is offering rebates to people who purchase safe rooms or tornado shelters for their homes.

The rebates are available to residents in the 26 Panhandle counties, but only 350 slots are available. One thing's for sure, the rebate is making storm shelters a whole lot more affordable. Elizabeth Thomas of the Panhandle Regional Planning Commission says, "This program offers a $3,000 rebate to cover half the cost of installation. For instance, if a shelter costs $5,000 to install, the rebate program will help with $2,500 of that. That's the cost of the shelter itself and the installation. Some shelters can go up to $10,000 and $12,000, but it still would remain at that $3,000 level. "

The PRPC offered this rebate a few years ago and were able to provide more than 1,000 residential shelters. There are certain qualifications your shelter must meet, so make sure to check on those, before buying.

To get the rebate, you must apply by February 18th. Visit www.theprpc.org or contact Elizabeth Thomas at (806)372-3381 beginning tomorrow to apply.